Despite being a so-called civilized species, humans are notoriously savage, even in this day and age. Hundreds of thousands if not millions of people are murdered each year, and countless others suffer from any number of abuses at the hands of others.
Most disturbing is when this involves "loved ones," particularly when it comes to parents and their children, and especially since it often leads to repetitive cycles where the abused grow up to be abusers of those in their family. Yet, due to familial bonds and/or full or just remnants of unconditional love, the abused often feel something for those who've wronged them.
Such issues certainly aren't funny, but they are given something of a bittersweet treatment in "The Savages," a family drama where they serve as the story's core. Written and directed by Tamara Jenkins (who's taken nearly a decade to follow up her generally well-received freshman debut, "Slums of Beverly Hills"), the pic follows the travails of the Savage family.
Increasingly suffering from dementia, patriarch Lenny (a very convincing Philip Bosco in an award worthy performance), has been booted out of his girlfriend's house following her unexpected death. As a result, his 42-year-old theater professor son, Jon (a terrific Philip Seymour Hoffman), and 39-year-old aspiring playwright daughter, Wendy (a brilliant Laura Linney), must figure out what to do with him.
Based on their own troubled childhood -- apparently stemming from the hands of their father, and the literal and/or figurative absence of their mother -- the Savage siblings have their own issues. Jon can't commit to marriage and thus isn't preventing his long-term girlfriend from having to move back to Poland, and Wendy is stuck in an affair with an older, married man, while trying to write a work based on her childhood entitled "Wake Me When It's Over."
Thus, while contending with their own damaged and self-centered lives, they contemplate their father's future and who will care for him. It doesn't exactly sound very entertaining, and the story certainly reeks of the potential of coming off as a made for TV movie that might air on one of those cable channels earmarked for female viewers. As a result, it certainly isn't anything that will likely result in multiple viewings, and the plot never really deepens into anything terribly insightful or resounding.
Even so, Jenkins manages to imbue the depressing and familiar material with enough smart and witty dialogue to temper what easily could have become a maudlin affair. Better yet, she elicits stellar performances from her leads that make the whole thing go down much easier than one initially would have suspected.
Of course, long-time followers and/or fans of the two main performers won't be surprised by any of that. Hoffman (who had a terrific year in 2007) perfectly captures an adult son who tries to mask the hurt he's carried his entire life, while Linney's performance is so finely tuned with believable little nuances that she should also be up for award consideration (if just for simply being a showcase for aspiring actors and actresses in how less truly is more).
Showing that civility can still blossom from earlier savagery, "The Savages" benefits from engaging characters and related performances, sharp writing, and just the right touch to keep the material from becoming sappy and/or melodramatic. The film rates as a 6 out of 10.
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